Western civilization is all about the brain; we are a very intellectually-driven society. Technology certainly exemplifies that quite well. But I find that mentality to be very limited; we glorify our knowledge, but neglect our minds.
The human mind has such untapped potential. For centuries, philosophers have argued that how we interpret the world is how the world is. If we interpret pain, the world as we know it is painful.
Distracting one's mind away from the objective present creates a new "reality," which seems/is as real as the "real" world. It is an overused reference, but this is at the heart of the Matrix. How do we know what is real? If we can tap into the power of our minds to create our own realities, people suffering from burns, or broken hearts, or even chicken pox, can change their reality into one in which they do are not experiencing their particular discomfort.
This is exactly what mom was doing for us when she gave us a lollipop to take away our pain, or put a cartoon band-aid over a wound. Our definition of "reality" shifted into one where our pain doesn't exist.
It is wonderful that technology can help people achieve these reality shifts, but man has the power to do that without technology.
Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother. - Kahlil Gibran